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Portion control. Is it ok to have your kids do this too?

Any articles about this? I feel like I would be depriving my children.

Thu. Jan 19, 10:41am

Talk to their pediatrician...or to a nutritionist specializing in children's nutrition. My gut feeling is that it's never too early to start learning portion control, but that if you make it too much of an issue, it could balloon into way more serious problems.

We were always served from the stove (as in not family style where you choose your own serving size) and we pretty much had to finish all the healthy stuff on our plate before dessert or before being excused. We probably could have left carbs behind, but definitely not vegetables!

Teaching your kids to eat right is a huge challenge, so good luck!

Thursday, January 19, 2006, 12:26 PM

I don't have a scientific article to support my argument but I imagine limiting food or drawing attention to portions at a young age would create issues and focus, forcing the issue. Children who are limited to watching television and engage in outdoor and physical activity usually have little difficulties in knowing how much food they need. They eat and stop when they are full. I would try to remember to use different things as rewards rather than food. If your child gets an A on a test, rather than saying "lets go out for ice cream", perhaps offering a favorite activity together or a new book would promote different and healthy attitudes towards food.

Thursday, January 19, 2006, 1:48 PM

I don't have kids, nor an article to back this up, but what if you focused less on portion "control" and more on "don't take more than you can eat" and on eating an appropriate amount of vegetables. If they misjudge (which they will), encourage seconds on protein and vegetables and discourage extra helpings of starch.

Sounds like maybe you should talk to their pediatrician next visit

Thursday, January 19, 2006, 2:14 PM

I'm not a calorie counter, so my opinion on this may be different. If you're emphasizing healthy choices, you don't have to worry much about portion control.

It's things like chips, soda, pizza, and almost anything else you buy in the frozen meals section or at a convenience store that you need to teach them to avoid.

If your kids grow up eating healthy unprocessed foods, portion control isn't an issue. (And don't say it's too difficult or time consuming or expensive to eat unprocessed foods, because you know your kids are worth it!!!!)

Thursday, January 19, 2006, 2:21 PM

Children are like little sponges. They will absorb what you are doing from example. I tell my daughter that it's ok to eat pizza, but not too much. Or it's ok to have ice cream, just not every day. Some foods are necessary and some foods are treats. If you give them good food to choose from, they will learn that those are healthy food items. How is your child going to learn about portion control unless you teach them?

Thursday, January 19, 2006, 2:30 PM

What my parents did worked great... my problem now is snacks...

This is what they did>

We each got a *very* small portion of each dinner food put on our plate, about 1/2 what mom or dad got.

They kept saying "No prize for finishing" but if we wanted more, we were always allowed seconds or thirds or fourths, each parcelled out by mom or dad.
The only rule we had with dessert (which was once a week) was that we had to eat at least 2/3 of our vegetables.

If it weren't for peanut butter and the lack of organized sports, I would still be as trim as I was when I lived at home.

Good luck~

Thursday, January 19, 2006, 3:30 PM

yea...this is a tricky subject. In general, the thought is: don't force that "clean your plate" attitude. That in general encourages children to develop habits of eating food just because it is there and not because they are still hungry.
I think the best thing is to set a good example for your child. Does you child have any kind of weight issue? If so, then stressing exercise is key as well as providing a wealth of healthy snacks and options at dinner.
I think that adding a rule that if you don't eat your veggie, you can't have dessert is fine. But you have to remember that children are growing and that proper nutrition and sufficient calories is critical to both body and brain development.
Tricky tricky tricky. I guess starting children out young with good habits, so that they develop a "taste" for vegetables and fruit instead of junk is ideal..
Also, make sure they are getting enough calcium. That is so important!!

Thursday, January 19, 2006, 6:05 PM

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